The present invention relates to a recorded content display program, apparatus and method, and more particularly to a recorded content display program and a recorded content display apparatus and method for effective display of the recorded content of an image recording apparatus.
FIG. 1 shows component elements of a network digital recorder (NDR). The NDR is a registered trademark of the assignee of the present application.
A network 2 is a computer network which connects plural computers and communicates signals such as control signals and data. Internet protocol (IP) cameras 3 (3-1 to 3-m) are cameras which output the shot video image data to the network. Client PCs 4 (4-1 to 4-n) are common personal computers with a web browser connected through the network.
An NDR 1 is connected to the IP cameras 3 (3-1 to 3-m) and the plural client PCs 4 (4-1 to 4-n), which are used to view the video image data and to set the NDR 1, through the network 2.
The NDR 1 has component elements such as a computer board 10 and a recording device 11. The computer board 10 has thereon connected a network interface (Network I/F) 101, a recording device interface (recording device I/F) 102, a memory 103, a Central Processing Unit (CPU) 104 and a clock 105 through a control bus 100.
The memory 103 has on its part a RAM disk (not shown) which has a file system mounted. The memory 103 stores information necessary for communications with the IP cameras 3. For example, it stores an IP address (URL) 61, a port number 62 and a connection channel number 63 for each camera. It also functions as a recording apparatus by a software program which is stored on the memory 103 and operated by the CPU 104. The operation program has a Disk I/O (Disk Input/Output) portion 50 to perform writing to and reading from the disk, a receiver portion 51 for receiving video image data from the IP cameras 3, a transmission portion 52 for transmitting video image data to the client PCs 4, and a management portion 53 for notifying activation/termination/setting changes of the above three programs.
The recording device 11 has therein camera recording areas 110 in number equivalent to that of the cameras for recording. The camera recording areas (110-1 to 110-m) are areas for recording the video image data from the IP cameras 3.
Roles of individual component elements are described with reference to a flow of video image data.
The IP camera 3 compresses the taken video images one frame at a time by an image compression technique such as JPEG and transmits to the network 2 in an HTTP format and to the NDR 1 in an IP packet format. The video image data sent from the IP camera 3 is transmitted to the network I/F 101 of the NDR 1 through the network 2 in the IP format.
The network I/F 101 converts the received IP format video image data into a format for transmission onto the control bus 100 and delivers the video image data to the receiver portion 51 for software which operates on the CPU 104. The receiver portion 51 takes only the video image data portion from the received HTTP format video image data and transfers the video image data to the Disk I/O portion 50. The Disk I/O portion 50 stores the video image data in the memory 103 to accumulate data of about 10 to 100 frames, calculates the stored position on the recording device 11 and stores in the recording device 11. The accumulated video image data is stored on the camera recording area 110 via the recording device I/F 102.
The video image data of the IP camera 3-1 is stored on the camera recording area 110-1, and the video image data of the IP camera 3-mis stored on the camera recording area 110-m. Thus, the video image data from the IP camera 3 is stored on the corresponding recording area. When recording is performed, information required for the recording operation is stored on the memory 103 of the NDR 1.
A user desiring to watch the video images recorded in the NDR 1 activates NDR reproduction software on the client PC 4. The NDR reproduction software obtains video image data from the NDR 1 and performs displaying and reproduction processing of the video images on the screen of the client PC 4. The NDR reproduction software on the client PC 4 transmits an IP format video image delivery request to the NDR 1 through the network 2. The video image request is made by use of the HTTP. For the video image request parameter, a CGI parameter format is used.
The video image delivery request sent from the client PC 4 is transmitted in the IP format to the network 2 to reach the network I/F 101 of the NDR 1. The network I/F 101 converts the received IP format video image delivery request into a format to transmit onto the control bus 100 and transmits to the transmission portion 52 of software which operates on the CPU 104. The transmission portion 52 analyzes a common gateway interface (CGI) parameter format of the HTTP, confirms that it is a video image request and transmits the video image request to the Disk I/O portion 50. According to the video image delivery request, the Disk I/O portion 50 reads the video image data from the camera recording area 110 via the recording device 102 and sends it back to the transmission portion 52.
The transmission portion 52 gives an HTTP header to the video image data received from the Disk I/O 50 to have an HTTP format and sends the video image data in the IP format from the network I/F 101 to the client PC 4 through the network 2. The NDR reproduction software on the client PC 4 decodes the received video image data and displays on the screen.
Here, the camera recording area 110 is generated before starting to obtain the video images by an NDR 1 setting authorized person from the client PC 4 by using an area securing setting screen. The NDR 1 setting authorized person considers a frame rate and recording time at a time of recording by the connected IP camera 3 to decide a bite size of the camera recording area.
As shown in FIG. 2, the video image data is recorded into the camera recording area 110 by starting to record from the head of the area to reach the end, and then overwriting is started again from the head. At the time of video image recording, automatic capacity enhancement is not performed but circulation recording is performed in a previously secured area.
Management numbers (independent sequential numbers starting from 1 for the individual cameras) for individual frames are allotted to the obtained video image data. Such numbers are called “frame numbers”. To record the video image data into the recording device 11, video image time and frame number are allotted to the video image data before storing. To obtain one frame of video image data from the client PC 4, the target video image data can be obtained by designating it with reference to the time or frame number. The video image request from the client PC 4 to the NDR 1 is performed in unit of one frame. An instruction is issued in the HTTP format. For details, refer to JP-A-2004-355724 and JP-A-2005-92679.
The client PC 4 is an ordinary personal computer which is operated by a Graphical User Interface (GUI). Reproduction software of the NDR 1 is application software which operates on the client PC 4 connected to the NDR 1 through the network 2.
FIG. 3 shows a screen (application screen 40) of the reproduction software of the NDR 1.
An end button 4001 is a button to terminate the application software. A connection address input combo box 4002 is an input column for an IP address to designate the NDR 1 to be connected. A channel number input combo box 4003 is an input column for a channel number in the NDR 1 designated by the connection address input combo box 4002. A video image display area 4004 is an area obtained from the NDR 1 and displays extended video image data.
A reproduced state 4005 displays a reproduced state. When connection to the NDR 1 is successive and video images are being reproduced, the reproduced state 4005 shows reproduced state-indicating character strings “Stop”, “Uniform forward reproduction”, “Uniform reverse reproduction”, “L-time speed forward reproduction”, “L-time speed reverse reproduction” (L at the time of fast forward and fast rewinding is an integer, L at the time of slow reproduction is a fraction or a decimal), and “Live”. If the connection with the NDR 1 fails, a character string indicating it is displayed.
A video image time 4006 indicates the obtained time, recorded time or image-taking time of video image data shown in the video display area. It shows “year/month/day and hour: minute: second and millisecond” values.
An earliest video image time 4007 indicates the earliest time in the video image data which is held by the channel of the connection destination NDR 1 designated in the box 4002 and the box 4003. A latest video image time 4008 indicates the latest time in the video image data held by the channel of the connection destination NDR 1 designated in the box 4002 and the box 4003.
A reproduction speed designation combo box 4009 designates the video reproduction speed.
When an earliest point shifting button 4010 is depressed, the earliest video image data of the channel of the connection destination NDR 1 designated in the boxes 4002 and 4003 is shown. When a reverse designated speed reproduction button 4011 is depressed, reverse reproduction is performed at the speed designated in the box 4009. When a reverse uniform reproduction button 4012 is depressed, reverse uniform reproduction is performed (the same operation as when a one-time speed is designated in the box 4009 and the button 4011 is depressed). When a pause button 4013 is depressed, the video image reproduction is paused. When a uniform forward reproduction button 4014 is depressed, the uniform forward reproduction is performed (the same operation as when the one-time speed is designated in the box 4009 and a forward designated speed reproduction button 4015 is depressed). When the forward designated speed reproduction button 4015 is depressed, the forward reproduction is performed at the speed designated in the box 4009. When a latest point shifting button 4016 is depressed, the latest video image data of the channel of the connection destination NDR 1 designated in the boxes 4002 and 4003 is displayed.
When a Live reproduction button 4017 is depressed, the latest video image of the connection destination NDR 1 designated in the boxes 4002 and 4003 is reproduced.
Year, month, day, hour, minute and second are designated by time designation combo boxes 4020 to 4025, and a retrieval execution button 4026 is depressed to show the video image data of the designated time.